Sunday, October 21, 2007

Kansas can run, too

By Ryan Wood

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Undefeated Jayhawks rank 9th in BCS

Jayhawks fall in at number nine in the Bowl Championship Series standings after winning in Colorado.

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2007 KU-Colorado Football

Boulder, Colo. — Kansas University football coach Mark Mangino noticed early in the Jayhawks' 19-14 victory over Colorado on Saturday that quarterback Todd Reesing was the target of the Buffaloes' defense.

That's fine, Mangino says. Because KU (7-0) can run the ball a little bit, too.

"They like to box up, and we realized they were trying to take away some routes we were really good at," Mangino said.

The result was a combined 29 carries by quarterback Todd Reesing and running backs Jake Sharp and Brandon McAnderson. Though it had mixed results early, it was critical in the second half as the Jayhawks ate clock and pulled away at the same time.

Specifically, Kansas took a 19-7 lead with 10:23 to go, the fruits of a time-consuming 15-play, 94-yard drive. That march included a 17-yard scramble by Reesing, a 12-yard run by McAnderson and a 10-yard dash by Sharp.

It didn't kill Colorado's chances, but it certainly crippled them.

"They came up and stopped our quick slants and things like that," said Sharp, who had 15 carries for 53 yards. "That can open up our run game, and me and Mac (McAnderson) were able to get some things done there. We worked hard. The line fought great. I think we won up front today."

The fact is, the run game's numbers weren't gaudy like they have been in the past. Reesing had an impressive 53-yard scramble and finished with 84 yards on seven rushes. McAnderson had 44 yards on seven carries.

But it was more than statistics, especially in a defensive battle. It was KU's offense finding out what wasn't working and using the versatility it long has claimed to have to find something that did.

"They gave us an opportunity to run the ball," Mangino said. "We are not just a passing offense. I think we have proven that we have a decent offensive line and two quality running backs who can run the football."

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Comments

Deke13 (anonymous) says...

I didn't care for Mangino's "play not to lose" approach the last quarter. We needed to stick to the plan and move the ball and it looked like we were more concerned with not turning it over and taking time off the clock. Sure, you don't want to turn it over, but 19-7 is not enough of a lead to go into prevent offense with. I'll take the win, but hopefully the coaches learned their lesson to keep the throttle down no matter the lead.

October 21, 2007 at 10:53 a.m. ( | suggest removal )

JBurtin (anonymous) says...

What the hell are you talking about?

If they would have run the ball up the middle three times in a row then punted I would have considered it playing not to lose. Calling pass plays means you're not just trying to run clock, the CU defense just played well and stopped our drives.

For God's sake, at least watch the freakin' game before you start making uneducated accusations.

October 21, 2007 at 12:48 p.m. ( | suggest removal )

actorman (anonymous) says...

Good point, Burtin. In fact, a lot of people criticized KU for passing on second down late in the game to allow CU to "save" their last timeout. But even though I didn't love the result, I loved the fact that KU didn't stick to the conservative "run it up the middle" attitude.

What's really impressive about this win is that each of KU's two TD drives had tremendous significance. It was a sloppy win overall, but when it counted the 'Hawks came through. One very quick drive to retake the lead (virtually identical to what KU did against KSUck), then a time-consuming 94-yard drive when the defense desperately needed some time to rest. This team just keeps doing what they have to do to win. No matter WHO a team is playing against (especially this year), it's HOW you play that counts, not just WHO you play. And how you play in crunch time is especially important. That's what the people who keep commenting on KU's weak schedule fail to realize.

October 21, 2007 at 2:14 p.m. ( | suggest removal )

seattlehawk_78 (anonymous) says...

7 and 0 speaks for itself. I'd rather Mangino stop going for it on 4th down and start kicking field goals but I can live with the fact that Mark and I have different coaching philosophies. And, since I've never coached and he has yet to consult me I'll have to learn to deal with it.

One thing I noticed about the play calling in this game as well as the K-State game. There seems to be a degree of stubbornness when it comes to calling certain plays that have limited success. Yesterday they kind of wore out the shovel pass. I think the last time they tried it they took a loss. It appeared to me the CU defense figured out this play by the end of the first half and it had little success in the 2nd half. Against K-State they kept throwing that little fade out to the sidelines behind the line of scrimmage and it never really worked that well. That play in particular is a bit slow to develop and once a defense sees it a couple of times it's not that hard to defend. But like I said, 7 and 0 speaks for itself.

October 21, 2007 at 2:44 p.m. ( | suggest removal )

kranny (anonymous) says...

The unsuccessful shovel pass opens up other plays. It keeps linebackers and d-linemen honest. If the linebackers creep back, pass routes are taken away and they are harder to block because they are so far off the line. We ran the shovel pass 3 times for 22 yards. After that we were able to get 8-10 yard runs on the dives. An O-coordinator understands that sometimes you have to eat a play to set up other plays. Warriner is a hell of a coach with a great ability so far to take young, partially great, partially overachieving talent and come out 7-0.

October 21, 2007 at 3:16 p.m. ( | suggest removal )

dagger108 (anonymous) says...

JB - you beat me to the post. Thanks for setting things straight.

Seattle - I can very much appreciate your comment about wanting to get points, even if by FG's. It seems like that thought very much falls in line with the 4th down calls. Mangno has stated regularly that they are going to be aggressive and go for it. IMHO, it is a very valid approach, and probably has tremendous benefit on the psychy of the team as well. It is definitely something that I can live with even when they turn the bal over on downs, or leave an extra 30 seconds on the clock. Let's just go for it!

October 21, 2007 at 9:44 p.m. ( | suggest removal )

vmwskywalk (anonymous) says...

A couple things:

The shovel pass and WR screens work to wear down those big D linemen. Even though they don't seem like we are getting a lot of yards, they have a purpose. Remember, we are running the spread offense.

Seattle, this comment isn't toward you. I believe the 4th down plays are debatable even though I agree with them. Those who continue to bag on Mangino about poor play calling and lack of coaching talent must not be watching the games or know what our record is. To bring this team along from what it was last year. To be 7 and 0. To go out and execute the way we have. To have these guys believe they can win every game. Mangino must be doing something right.

Now....let's go get coach Fran fired!

October 22, 2007 at 10:07 a.m. ( | suggest removal )